Adversity
by Larinzia
Summary: Tonks & Kingsley. The story of a love that almost never was. complete
1. Chapter 1

_If we had not winter, the spring would not be so pleasant. If we did not sometimes taste of adversity; prosperity would not be so welcome. –Anne Bradstreet_

The warm, sunny day is not welcome. I want rain and thunder and sleet and storm. I want to feel that nature feels my pain, my anger.  
  
It's been three days since I said goodbye to him and I have seen forever in those hours. We've said goodbye before. Our jobs often take us to different places at different times, keeping us apart through birthdays and holidays and special days. It's our life, the one we chose for ourselves.  
  
I swipe at my eyes, trying to rub the tired out of them. My journey through the streets of London seems stupid now but I wanted this chance to walk off the stress of the Auror meeting before dealing with the silence of my flat. The silence I usually crave.  
  
An owl is waiting for me on the fifteenth-floor landing. It's okay for it to be here since none of the residence of the building know there are more then fourteen floors so would never come up to see any of the strange things that sometime happen. "Hey, there. What are you doing here? I wasn't expecting any correspondence this afternoon." The bird hops out to my outstretched hand and proudly lifts out its foot. "Something important, I suppose from that little puffed-up chest. You must be pretty new to the Ministry. I haven't seen you before. Let's get inside and I'll see what you have."  
  
I manually slide the locks in place, as he has always instructed me to do whenever I am alone. Silly man. As if he hasn't taught me how to handle myself in almost every situation. London is nothing for a woman with a wand and a sense of humor. The last idiot who tried to mug me on my nightly run will probably never figure out how to get his kneecaps back to the right side of his legs.  
  
His worry makes me smile, though. Over the years, I've found that he only worries about the things he cares about. It's taken me a long time, almost too long, to discover that fact. I don't know how many times I would grate my teeth and scowl at him for his endless reminders while silently calling him all kinds of names that a proper lady should never even know about. I learned them from him. He's got quite the mouth on him.  
  
The night I discovered the truth, I almost lost him. Our team had been sent out to check on a rumor of a yeti on the prowl in the northern most ridges of the British Isles. An unregistered animal, to our best estimates, that was already showing aggressive tendencies and escaping all the traps laid out for it by the group of animal experts after him.  
  
"Tell me how this thing got over here from Tibet again?" I growled, fumbling with the closures of my armour. "And what do they expect us to do about it?"  
  
"We're going to do our job. It's either us or the execution squad. Which would you prefer?" He reached over and did up the straps for me, his large hand lingering on my side. "Do you have your wand where you can get to it?"  
  
"Yes. Don't I always?" I snapped, turning away from him to make sure that my wand was in a place that I could get to it. The man never let me do my job! He must think that I was ten the way he treated me sometimes.  
  
I was first to the drop site, pacing to let off some of the adrenaline that was already in my blood. The waiting was the hardest for me, especially this close to the start of a mission. What was holding everyone else up? We were only a six-man team tonight, handpicked because of our abilities. I was there because of my excellence at Concealment, but I had a sneaking suspicion it was also because of my fondness for animals.  
  
"Ready to go?"  
  
There was no one else around besides the two of us. "Sure. Where'd everyone else go?"  
  
"Something else came up. The other four are needed to check out a disturbance in the Cornish mountains."  
  
"And we're the only two going? To take on a yeti?" I stand to my full height, knowing that I could very well be left at home but wanting to make a good impression on the off chance I was still needed. Concealment is all well and good but sometimes an outright blast from the wand is what's best.  
  
He chuckled and cuffed my tense shoulder. "Why not? You watch my back and I'll watch yours. It'll be good training."  
  
I didn't have a chance to issue one of my scathing remarks before he pressed his hand against mine, a small button in his palm. His fingers securely wrapped around mine as the portkey transported us deep into a portion of the island that I had never seen before and have no desire to arrange a return trip.  
  
A gentle snow was falling on a land already engulfed in the white stuff. I crammed my knit cap securely onto my head, feeling like a schoolboy in the thing but not wanting to risk frostbite. He left his bald head uncovered until I turned to him and silently pointed to his pocket and then his head. How does he not feel the biting cold? We exchanged signs, quietly creeping through the snow until we came the coordinates that have been given.  
  
There was no sign that anyone had been here. Ours were the only sets of footprints leading into or out of the wooded glen.  
  
"I'd feel better if we didn't stand out here in the open like this until we know what's going on." His voice was almost lost in the stillness. I nodded and scouted the area for a tree that had only a little snow around the bottom of its trunk and suitable cover for both of us. He crawled in after me, filling up the small space before I drew more limbs down over the opening.  
  
The cold was already starting to penetrate my bones through the layers of clothing and protection and I wedged myself further between the tree and his bulk, fighting the shivers.  
  
"Did we miss our contact?" I ask as close to his ear as I can get, not wanting to be overheard if someone is in the area. He hadn't been expecting that, starting slightly before turning his head towards me.  
  
"No. I don't think we were meant to find our contact."  
  
"Does it feel wrong to you, too?"  
  
He nodded. "Wondered if it felt off to you. A yeti in Britian is not a common occurrence. Neither is this many strange occurrences spread out so far from each other. It's too planned, too predictable. I hoped to throw off whoever arranged this meeting by bringing only the two of us. Up for the challenge?"  
  
Merely nodding, I braced myself against the tree to pull out the small packet from my pocket. It'd been months since I'd needed to get into my stash of treasures but I quickly pulled out the blanket and shook it out to its full width. We each take a corner and tuck it in securely. My other goodies can wait a little longer since it looks like we might be in for a night in the wilderness.  
  
"Is it safe to talk?" The shivers have increased even with the added warmth of the blanket. "I need to get my mind off this cold."  
  
He nods this time and I can see his smile. "You going to be okay with this enforced calm?"  
  
"I'd punch you but it might jar the blanket. I can be still when I need to."  
  
"Is that why I can feel your foot bouncing?"  
  
"I'm keeping count."  
  
"You're wanting to get up and run around."  
  
I put my mouth right up to his ear and hiss.  
  
"You do that again and I'm going to turn you over and give you a pounding on your backside."  
  
"Would you really, Auror Shaklebolt? Is that in the rule books?"  
  
"No, Auror Tonks. It most certainly is not but it would make me feel a lot better."  
  
I laughed quietly. "You always feel I need a father around to keep me on the right path."  
  
"No, I don't want to be your father. Not at all," he drawled, his voice low and...well, kinda sexy.  
  
My foot went still and I forgot to breath as he turned to look straight ahead again. I had never thought of him as much more then a drill-sergeant before, a person always yelling who was paid to make sure that each person under his command was well taken care of.  
  
"I wish I was a Animagus right now instead of a Metamorphmagus. I'd change into a white rabbit quicker than you could say 'Presto Chango'. This place doesn't like us very much." Maybe if I change the subject, my heart will quit beating so rapidly. "What would you change into?"  
  
"A hawk so I could scout around. There's something else here but I can't make out if it's friendly or not."  
  
I fall silent, not wanting to mess with the strange radar the man has for trouble.  
  
"Why a rabbit?"  
  
"It's small and I'm sure it's warm in all that fur."  
  
"I think you'd more likely be a ermine. Sleek and soft."  
  
"Oh, come on. I think the cold is starting to play with your mind. It almost sounds like you're flirting with me."  
  
"I am."  
  
"Well, then the cold really is messing with you." I burrow my red face into his neck, aware that this is not the first time he's said things like this when it was just the two of us. "Be quiet and keep watch."  
  
"Yes, ma'am."


	2. Chapter 2

Courage is what you're afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you're scared. –Eddie Richenbacher  
  
The flat is silent, as I knew it would be, but I don't flip on the speakers that I normally keep on to flood the place with music. Instead, I walk over and curl up in his favorite chair. The worn leather creaks and groans but molds to my curves.  
  
The afternoon sun has been beating down on the yellow brick of the building and the interior is warm. A tiny tail waves from the other side of a tall basket.  
  
"Are you going to come out and play, Mistoffelees?" The kitten peeks his tiny head over the edge and mews before jumping out and strolling over to investigate my toes. "Have you been sleeping since I left you this morning? No, it looks like you at all your breakfast. Soon you'll be big and strong."  
  
I imagine that he will just shake his head when he returns, murmuring something about yet another stray that has made its way into our lives. This little thing won't take up much room and will someday be strong enough to be introduced to the others in the menagerie. Most of them are in the garden, enjoying the sun.  
  
"Jump up here. I need to cuddle with something right now and you are the perfect fit. Come on." I coax the kitten up onto my lap and settle him into my arms. For such a little thing, he has a mighty purr.  
  
Yeti's have a surprising purr, too. Not many people know that, but, having met one up close and personal, I can say for sure that they do.  
  
I fell asleep that night, my face pressed into the curve of his neck. For hours, he kept a constant vigil as the night deepened around us. At one point, I woke to pull at the blanket as it started to slip down my shoulder. He tucked it in and pulled my free hand under his arm to keep it warmer.  
  
A howl brought me out of my slumber quickly. "What was that?" I ask quietly without lifting my head. He shakes his head and I carefully pull the blanket free of his body so he can move forward.  
  
The tree trembled against my back as the sound got closer. I whipped out my wand at his hand signal, my body silent as I concentrated my entire being on him. I'd never spent much time in a forest so the sounds were new to me but I tried to block them out as I had when I fell asleep.  
  
He signals me to go back and over to the left and I comply, not eager to be away from him like this. It was obvious he wanted to divide and conquer this new threat.  
  
Snow can be an easy thing to get through when there isn't a crunchy surface or the drifts don't become too deep. Unfortunately, I had to deal with both as I tried to get to the cover of another large tree. In my haste, I misstepped into a soft spot and tumbled into a sea of white that threatened to swallow me. Stop panicking. Stay still.  
  
When I stopped thrashing about and listened, I heard nothing. The howling had stopped and there wasn't any indication of movement from my strange cradle. Very slowly, I sat up using just my stomach muscles and trying to resist the urge to find a handhold. Still no sound. The edge of the depression loomed above me and I looked around at the scenery. With my wand, I brought a tree branch closer and grabbed it for leverage.  
  
The silence was heavy as I found my spot and looked around. If I was in the right place, I should've be able to see him but he wasn't under the tree I thought would be the one I just left. Another quick glance proved that no one had moved so I stay put, getting slightly spooked.  
  
"Come out, Nymphadora. Let's get this over with here and now."  
  
Who calls me Nymphadora? I scanned the area but nothing seemed amiss. The only person to ever use my full name is my mother...or my aunts! It takes all of my control to not scream out in fear. What is she doing here?  
  
"Don't bother hiding, darling. I can smell your fear. Besides, you come out or he dies."  
  
"Stay where you are! Stay-" I hear him order before his voice is muffled.  
  
"After all I've heard about you over the years, I almost wondered if they would let you come on this mission. This one I picked out especially for you, darling. You hate being cold but you have that Black spine that keeps you from admitting your weaknesses. You love animals but you're frightfully clumsy. So clumsy that you left your partner open. One little Crucio curse and...." He screamed in pain as I fought back the tears.  
  
He's trained to handle this. This is what he does. I know what that noise was now, though. A giant hand scooped me up, almost breaking a rib. The white fur was warmer then the snow but I found that I was having trouble breathing. Obviously, I wasn't going anywhere soon.  
  
"Very good. Make him set her down next to the man." I heard a strange dialect but felt the creature pull me back away from the group at the end of the clearing. There were two options open at the point, I felt, and I weighed both of them briefly.  
  
The creature, I was assuming it was truly a yeti and the reports hadn't been as false as we thought, was warming up to his new toy and didn't want to let go. I could use this. The man who was controlling the animal was obviously incompetent and mean.  
  
The other option was to be taken. Where my lovely aunt was, the Dark Lord was never far behind.  
  
"Such a pretty boy. So pretty," I crooned, struggling to get my wand hand out of his grip. "Let's go play, shall we?"  
  
I swear on a stack of Sanskrit scrolls that the animal giggled. Really. A yeti can giggle. He started across back across the clearing before the hex hit him and we both landed in a pile of snow.  
  
"Get him back here! Don't think you can run, Nymphadora. I'll kill this man before you even leave this clearing. Wouldn't want that on your precious little conscience."  
  
I shook my head to clear the snow that had packed into my ears. "Come on, boy. Get up." He was groggy but the spell hadn't been strong enough to knock him out completely. Nice to know that I had a strong shield for the time being. I didn't know how much more he could take or if she would start to strengthen her spells, but I knew this was something to start with.  
  
"You wouldn't dare kill him, Bella. Not that quickly. He knows too much and it would be too boring. It's not me that you really want."  
  
"Oh, my dear. It is you. I've wanted to kill you for years. I'd kill Draco, too, if Voldemort didn't have plans of his own for the brat. With Sirius gone and Narcissa merely a hand puppet, the Black family fortune will be mine. All mine."  
  
The yeti attempted to get up but I wrapped my hand in his fur and spent a great deal of energy keeping him in place. It nearly wrenched my arm out of socket but I found I could scratch at him as if he were just a really big dog. That when I nearly got blown over from the force of his purr.  
  
"I'm not standing in your way. Mum and Dad have been disowned and I'm assuming that means I'm out of the family as well."  
  
"I don't want to take any chances. You can't die out here, though. The circumstances are all wrong. I want you to die at home, in your bed, where you can be found with him." I heard his scream again, weaker this time. Stupid woman! She'd push him to the edge of what she thinks is his endurance. He'd been trained to handle things like this and I wasn't fooled by that last pathetic sound. If she hadn't moved his wand far enough away, she was going to be in a world of hurt.  
  
"So what? That won't surprise anyone. We've been an item for weeks now. Months. Go ahead. Check out his memory." I prayed to the deities that those hot glances the last couple of days had been what I now assumed they were. He's a guy, right? All guys have dreams like that, don't they? I certainly hoped I could inspire them or he could come up with some quickly.  
  
He groaned again and began to shriek, "No, not that one. Not that one. No, no, no." I specifically count the no's. Four minutes? How was I supposed to distract her for four minutes?  
  
"Show time," I crooned once again to the yeti. "I think I will call you Griffle. You look like a Griffle." The animal nearly salivated on me as I stroked his ear. "Let's go show the mean old lady she can't keep calling me Nymphadora and get away with it." 


	3. Chapter 3

_For all your days prepare, and meet them ever alike. When you are the anvil, bear – when you are the hammer, strike. –Edwin Markham  
_

"I think a pot of tea is in order. That will get my melancholy mind off today and fix it towards something brighter." I rub at my stomach as I stand up, nearly dropping the cat as he decides he wants to stay in the chair. "No, no. You're coming with me. If I let you down, you'll just go and sleep some more. No more sleeping or you'll keep the household up with all your little games."  
  
The small owl hoots from the perch in the corner.  
  
"I've forgotten about you. I'm sorry. Come into the kitchen with me and I'll find a few treats for you before you have to go back to the smelly owlery."  
  
The kitchen is still being remodeled but I don't mind since I very seldom step foot over the threshold to get something other than a snack or to feed the animals. He was bringing in a bigger sink, he had said, so that the dishes wouldn't pile up quite so quickly. I think he may have been directing the comment to me but I just pulled the latest Witch Weekly magazine up higher and started to hum. I told him, going into this, that we'd eventually need a maid. I'm just not cut out for housework.  
  
I'm good at Concealment, though. Always have been.  
  
The yeti's white fur was a little hard to work with, being different shades and hues of white, gray or ivory, but I made it work for my purposes.  
  
"To the left, Griffle. Don't want to get over there too quickly, now. Must give the nice man some time to get into position."  
  
He was still moaning on about feeling completely drained and how dare she break into his private thoughts. Private thoughts, my eye. The man could hide any thought as easily as snapping his fingers. It was truly amazing that she didn't see that but she always was a little wrapped up in herself.  
  
"Don't bother hiding behind that beast. I don't mind taking out the nasty thing to get to you. Oh, do shut up, little man. Both of you! I'm not going to hurt the yeti and I promise not to look into your dirty little secrets again. Get a room next time, though. I don't know if my niece could handle being found on the table by the entire brute squad you call an army. The little innocent seems to be a little slutty."  
  
Don't blush. You'll blow your cover. What was he thinking? I found myself actually wanting to know what she saw in his mind. It had her flustered, searching for a new plan.  
  
I waited until we were in the middle of the glen before speaking again. "Didn't mean to ruin your plans, my dearest aunt. Will it work just as well to besmirch my name now by being found with the man whom I have professed to love on several occasions? Oh, wait. Do you know what love is?"  
  
Her beautiful face clouded over and I saw her mouth pull into a ugly scowl.  
  
"Careful, aunty. Don't mark your beautiful face with all those awful lines. The Dark Lord won't like your face all marked up like an old hag. I've heard he prefers young women. How will you ever compete with wrinkles?"  
  
She fairly spit as she replied, "I don't have wrinkles, my dear. Never did. Your mother, the goddess bless her a thousand times over, is the one with all the wrinkles."  
  
"And she looks radiant, don't you know. I saw her just last week after she and Papa came back from a trip to France. They're talking about getting a house off the southern coast. She does have an awful lot of wrinkles, though. You're right on that account. And she's the youngest, isn't she?"  
  
Her anger was palpable. After I whispered the last command to the animal, I jumped from his arms, landing in his previous tracks. The snow still shielded me from casual glances but it wouldn't last for long.  
  
I swept the area for any other beings and came to the conclusion that the stupid woman had only brought this animal and his trainer with her – to take on two trained Aurors. How little did she think of us that she didn't have any backup?  
  
It was frightfully easy to dispense with the Tibetan trainer and I killed him without even blinking an eye. He wasn't pure evil, as my aunt was, but he had let his animal be used for evil purposes, which was almost worse. Good riddance.  
  
When my mental clock ticked off the last second of four minutes, I took off the concealment charm. She blinked to see me standing directly in front of her, my wand leveled at her.  
  
"You're an evil woman, Bellatrix. There's a special place in hell for you." I thought I had caught her off guard but the only show of her surprise was a slight widening of her eyes.  
  
"We have the same blood, poppet. Remember that. Why don't we just kill this man and go have a chat where it's nice and warm?" Her dark eyes were cold and calculating. Even though she still had the face of a young woman, the eyes were old.  
  
"A chat? Don't make me laugh. You've already told me you want to kill me. We may have the same genetic background but we don't have the same blood." I let myself glance quickly to my right where he had been a moment ago. "And I would never let you kill him."  
  
She didn't notice my glance as she was too caught up in trying to get her face into a sneer without wrinkling it. "Because you lust after his body? Such a naughty girl."  
  
"No, because I love him."  
  
The streak of green light came from over my shoulder and hit her in the chest. Her eyes widened slightly more and she faltered slightly but stayed on her feet.  
  
"Children, please. Quit playing around so I can kill you."  
  
How did that not kill her? I didn't dare turn to look at him, my eyes riveted on her wand as it slowly rose in the air. Her laughter was hysterical now.  
  
"Tonks, get down," he ordered directly behind me. I didn't want to, though. I wanted to stay in front of him so her curse would hit me. I didn't want to watch him die but I couldn't think of anything to stop her. Time had slowed down and I could see her intent. Take out the man and slowly torture the girl. Being the first one dead would be the easy part.  
  
"I'm not leaving you."  
  
"Do as I say or I will write you up."  
  
I turned to look at him, knowing that she wouldn't aim for my back. "I do love you, you know."  
  
"And I want those dreams to come true so get out of the way."  
  
There is no way to truly explain how I was able to force the curse away from him since I wasn't watching her. I heard her shriek and felt the curse streak past me once again but my wand came up as soon as it hit him and I yelled words I had never heard before. A yellow light shot out and engulfed the curse and shoved it aside.  
  
"Griffle! Now!"  
  
The yeti, silent and forgotten, ran up behind her as he had been instructed and lifted her high into the air. The animal's roar and the mad woman's shriek mingled together into a horrible sound and then silence. A human body, even one fortified by magic, can still be broken easily enough if shaken hard enough.  
  
I turned to his fallen form, aware that he could still be dead after the hasty deflection. The steady snow had begun to form on his cold face. "Kingsley?" I ripped open the armour, searching frantically for a heartbeat. It was there, very slow but steady.  
  
"I seem to have failed this training, K. I'm sorry that I didn't have your back."  
  
His eyes opened and I smiled at him until they closed again, his head falling to the side.


	4. Chapter 4

_Do not despise your situation; in it you must act, suffer and conquer. From every point on earth we are equally near heaven and the infinite. –Henri Fredrick Amiel  
_

"Okay, little owl. Let's see what news you have to bring me. I wonder who you could be from?"  
  
I unroll the parchment, thankful that I found a chair to read this in. It's been awhile since I've heard from my family.  
  
_Dear Nymphadora,  
  
We received your last owl and couldn't be happier for you. So much news in such a little bit of time.  
  
Sorry your father and I couldn't make it to the festivities but have sent you a present. The little owl who brought this letter hasn't had a good home and is looking for the kind of love I know you have in abundance. I know you have haven't wanted another owl since the death of Sedgewick but thought this little thing might be useful since the two of you will be apart so often.  
  
Be happy.  
  
Love, Mumma and Papa  
_  
"So, you're a present, are you?" I reach over to ruffle the tiny owl's feathers the he has proudly puffed out again. "I'd send you out with a letter for him but I'm not sure where he's at right now. Stupid red tape. Stupid bureaucracy. Stupid of me to feel I shouldn't have to wait for him now and then."  
  
I get up and leave the kitchen, trailed by both kitten and bird. Tea no longer sounds appetizing. Instead, I curl up on the large couch and try to keep from crying. Undetermined length of time for mission is a nasty term.  
  
"Let's think of a good name for you. Names are important. Even though there's one person in this world that calls me Nymphadora, I know how important it is to have a good name." The owl hoots and I glare at him. "Don't even think of laughing at me. It's not my fault I was born into a family of odd names. I like his nickname for me much better. He calls me Beautiful, you know. No one has ever called me that before."  
  
The kitten curls up beside me and begins his mighty purring as I contemplate the owl once again.  
  
"I think I will call you Apple. You definitely look like one. Wonder if you'd get lost in a fruit bowl if I put you next to one."  
  
Lost. That night I felt lost. Once again, the options loomed before me. I needed to get him back to base and some medical attention. I also needed to get Griffle to a safe place, quite possibly back to Tibet. She didn't need me. Her own kind could come find her and deal with her remains. Good riddance to bad rubbish, my father always said.  
  
Hastily, I searched for the small button that had brought us here. I saw him put it in a pocket but I can't seem to find the right one. It was so very small.  
  
Griffle set down beside us, holding onto one of Kingsley's hands in his huge paws. "Oh dear. You can't come with us. You'll get scared and rampage through the streets of the city and I'll be blamed. I'm coming back for you, though. I just need to get him to some decent civilization and then I'll be back."  
  
The button popped into my hand and I held it up, hoping against hope that it would work for the return trip. But how was I going to get back to Griffle? It would be hours before another portkey could be processed for this location.  
  
"Griffle, let go of the nice man and go stand by the tree. Yes, that's right. Good yeti."  
  
Quickly, I put the button securely in his hand and make a fist around it. With a flick of my wand, I activated it and watched as he disappeared.  
  
So, this is what real pain feels like. I could only call upon the gods to protect him and hoped that someone was nearby to get him to a healer. It was out of my hands now.  
  
The trip to Tibet was uneventful and cold. I was beginning to wonder if I would ever be warm again. I bid a sad farewell to Griffle at the local MOM after making sure he would be put into the back country and not killed outright for leaving unlawfully. After threatening all kinds of lawsuits and petitions, I was finally able to convince them that they didn't want to mess with me. Not tonight.  
  
I was numb when I got back to London. Before I could ask around about Kingsley, Mad-Eye swept me into his cramped office and away from prying eyes and wagging tongues.  
  
"Hot cocoa first and then reports. You've got tons of reports to fill out, little girl. And don't try to pull that face with me. It may work with the others but I'm immune." I gave up and put my head down to breathe in the warm steam from the hot cup, but suddenly felt his hand on my head. "You did good. He's gonna make it."  
  
He left me alone with my tears. The reports eventually got done but I'm still not sure if I did them or not.  
  
"I never made it to the hospital that night, either."  
  
"Who're you talking to?"  
  
Apple flutters his wings in surprise as the large, black man sits on the couch.  
  
"You scared me half to death. When did you get home?" I don't wait for the answer, hauling myself up to reach his lips. After several minutes, I pull away, searching his face. "Are you okay?"  
  
"I'm fine. You worry too much."  
  
"And you love every minute of it."  
  
I lie back down and smile up at him. He leans across me, his lips moving over my neck. "What've you been up to besides talking to yourself?"  
  
"Nothing really. Trying to keep calm after the stupid meeting over my new duties. Feeding the animals. Telling our son the story of when we first really knew we loved each other."  
  
His lips stop and he lifts his head to stare at me. "Our son?"  
  
I nod, the first real smile in three days breaking through. "Yes. I went to get a check up right after you left. It wasn't your Chicken Wellington after all. That doesn't mean you can make it again anytime soon." I stop laughing and stare at him, the waiting and wanting of the last couple of days catching up with me. "I've waited for the three longest days of my life to get to tell you that you'll be a father in eight months."  
  
Someday, I will be able to tell our son the story of the first time I ever saw his father cry but, for now, I wipe the tears away with my fingers as he lays his head down on my stomach. "I love you, Kingsley Shaklebolt. I love you very, very much."


End file.
